Refrigerator drawer



Patented Nov. 12, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE REFRIGERATOR DRAWERof New York Application March 1S, 1932, Serial No. 599,671

8 Claims.

My present invention relates generally to refrigeration and it has moreparticular reference to a, removable tray or drawer adapted-to beinserted in the ordinary frame or rack provided r5 in household andother mechanical refrigerators to receive and hold drawers or trays inwhich water is adapted to be frozen into cubes.

In the various mechanical refrigerators such as are operatedelectrically or by gas, to mel chanically extract the heat from theinterior of the refrigerator, or in other words, in the type ofrefrigerator which is maintained in cold condition by self-operatingmechanism associated with the refrigerator as distinguished from the ltype which is kept cold by a supply of ice, there is usually a rack orframe built into the refrigerator to receive a series of trays ordrawers Ieach of which may contain a quantity of water to be frozen intoice cubes for table yuse and other household purposes. This rack isusually disposed in the coldest portion of the refrigerator.

The general object of the present invention is to provide a drawer ortray which may be introduced into the refrigerator, preferably in therack employed for holding the ice cube trays. My improved drawer or trayis intended to be used in the making of ice cream and various frozendesserts. The device consists primarily of a drawer for holding thematerial or liquid which is to be frozen, a cover being provided for thedrawer or tray, and means are provided to agitate the fluid disposed inthe tray, in order to bring about a gradual and uniform freezing actionthroughout the body of liquid. i

Heretofore it has not been possible to make ice cream and frozendesserts in refrigerator trays or drawers, of smooth, even texture,because there was no means provided for agitating the liquid from timeto time in order to prevent it fro-m separating and in order to have theliquid freeze evenly throughout. It is the particular object of thepresent invention to provide a drawer or tray, preferably provided witha cover, for containing the liquid and to provide simple meansaccessibly exteriorly of the drawer, preferably at the front end thereofand which may be operated without removing the cover from the drawer orremoving the drawer from the rack for the purpose of agitating theliquid contained in the drawer.`

The liquid of which the frozen dessert is to be made is placed in thetray or drawer and the cover is applied thereto. The covered drawer withits contents are placed in the refrigerator in the 5 5 coldest sectionthereof, such as in the rack usually employed for holding ice cubemaking trays, in order that the present drawer and its contents may besubjected to the coldest temperature within the refrigerator. From timeto time the operator will open the refrigerator door, take hold 5 of theoperating device at the front end of the drawer and operate it so thatthe agitator which is disposed within the drawer will be moved toagitate all portions of the body of liquid.

This agitating action causes the liquid which 10 is in Contact with theinner surface of the drawer, and therefore at the coldest positions inthe drawer, to be moved away from the surfaces of the drawer, and newand warmer portions of the liquid to be brought into direct contact withthe l5 drawer in order that heat in all portions of the liquid will beextracted rapidly and evenly to bring about the freezing of the liquidwithout separation.

It is one object of the invention to provide a 2O drawer of thecharacter referred to wherein the interior of the drawer is entirelydevoid of extraneous pieces and mechanisms other than the means foragitating the liquid which must neces- Y sarily extend into the liquid.25

The agitator and the means for operating it may be quickly detached fromthe drawer for the purpose of cleaning both the drawer and the agiitating device. The present agitating device is simple and free ofintricate mechanism, so that 30 there are no parts requiring oiling andthere is nothing to introduce foreign matter into the liquid in thedrawer. The agitator is adapted to be moved bodily along the drawer andto fully agitate all portions of the body of liquid. In this 35 way itis possible to prevent settling or separation of the liquid becausethere are no pockets in which the liquid may escape agitation.

Another object of the invention is to provide a refrigerator drawerhaving an agitating device 40 which is simple to manufacture,inexpensive, easy to install and operate, and which may be very easilycleaned and maintained in a sanitary condition. Other objects of theinvention will be set forth in the following detailed description.

In the drawing forming part of this application,

Figure l is a plan View of my refrigerator drawer with the coverremoved, 50

Figure 2 is a side .elevation thereof with a portion of the drawerbroken away to show the agitator,

Figure V3 is a sectional View of a portion of the drawer and agitatorillustrating how .the agitating members may flex when the agitator isreciprocated in one direction.

Figure 4 is a similar view of the same parts illustrating the bendingaction of parts of the agitator when the agitator is moved Vin thereverse direction to that illustrated in FigureV 3,

Figure 5 is'a perspective View of the parts of the agitator which actupon the fluid,

Figure 6 is a longitudinal, sectional view showing my invention in amodiiied form, and

Figure 7 is a perspective view of a portion of the forward end of thedrawer and cover, and relating to the form of the invention shown inFigure 6.

The drawer itself may partake of any desired shape but for conveniencein manufacture, and in order to permit the drawer to be inserted in theordinary tray rack of a mechanical refrigerator, I prefer to make thedrawer in rectangular form. In the drawing I have illustrated, in theconstruction shown inFigures 1 to 5, a drawer which consists of a bottomwall l, opposite parallel side walls 2, 3, a front wall 4, and a rearwall 5 the Vside and end walls being disposed in rectangular form andopen at the top. A handle 6 may be provided on the front wall of thedrawer to facilitate placing the drawer into and removing it from theordinary tray rack by a sliding motion.

For covering the drawer to protect the conof the refrigerator tents fromforeign matter and to prevent the contents from absorbing odors andflavors from foods within the refrigerator, I have provided a cover 'ihaving a depending flange 8 adapted to nt over the various side and endwalls of the drawer in order to close the open top thereof. I have showna stuing box or gland 9 which is ntted into a suitable aperture in thefront wall l of the drawer and which I have shown disposed with its axiscentrally of the compartment ID of the drawer.

Any gland or stuing box of ordinary or special construction may be used,and for this reason I have not shown the details of construction of thegland. Y

There is a shaft or rod il which is adapted to reciprocate through thecentral opening of the gland, so that one portion of this rod isdisposed within the compartment il), while one portion extends throughthe gland and projects at the front end of the drawer where I have shownit provided with a handle l2 which may be grasped by the hand for thepurpose of reciprocating the rod lengthwise through the gland, andtherefore Vthrough the front wall of the drawer.

Within the drawer there is an agitating device connected with one end`of the rod ll and in thev preferred construction it consists of thefollowing: There is a spider I3 provided with a central aperture toreceive the threaded end I4 of the rod l l therethrough, and there areclamping nuts Ithreaded onto this threaded end'of the rod, which nutsare adapted to clamp against opposite faces of the central portion ofthe spider and around the aperture .I 6 for the purpose of securing thespiderimmovably upon the end of the rod whichremains within thecompartment IVD. Each armY `Ii of the spider is provided with a strap ofsplit formation comprising two arms I8, I9l arranged in opposedpositions and extending around opposite sides, of the scraping membersinV order to secure these scraping menibers individually to the severalarms of the spider.

Ill-.the drawing IA have shown four scraping their outer faces 2l formsubstantially a continuous rectangular surface.

The arms of the spider on which the Scrapers are carried are preferablymade of metal and more or less resilient so that the several Scrapersmay rock as permitted by the flexing of the arms of the spider. In thisregard the scraping members may rock not only crosswise but to a limitedextent lengthwise, in order that the Scrapers may conform to thesurfaces with which they engage, notwithstanding any inaccuracies orlack of parallelisrn in the several surfaces.

Operation The form of the invention illustrated in Figures 1 to 5 may beoperated as follows: A quantity of liquid which is to be frozen will beplaced in the compartment I@ of the drawer after which the cover will beplaced on the drawer and the whole inserted into the proper rack orholder in the refrigerator. For this purpose, one or more of the icecube trays may be removed from the rack and the present drawer placed inits position. The front 4 of the drawer, to wit, the part having thehandle 6, will be in convenient position to be grasped by simply openingthe refrigerator drawer (not shown). The present drawer with itscontents will remain in the refrigerator lfor a period of time until thecontents of the drawer become cool and are approaching the freezingpoint.

From time to time the refrigerator door may be opened and the operatorwill grasp the handle l2 and reciprocate the rod I I without necessarilyremoving the drawer from its position in the rack. The rod isreciprocated rst in the direction indicated in Figure 3 and then afterthe agitator has moved the full length of the drawer, the rod isreversed and is moved back in the direction indicated in Figure 4. Y

While the agitator is moving as shown in Figure 3 the scraping members2U are more or less tilted so that ene of slides against' a surface ofthe drawer or cover and operates somewhat inV the mannerV of a squeegeeto scrape the liquid from the surface of the several walls of the drawerand also-from the inside ofL the surface of the cover.

The portion of the liquid dislodged from the surfaces of the drawer andcover is, by the movement of the scraper along the drawer, directedtheir longitudinal edges 22 V inwardly by the'several Scraperstoward'the axis of the drawer. in direct contact As this liquid, whichhas been with the surfaces of the drawer and its cover, are dislodgedfrom the surfaces andV i 'i the bring one of the triangular edges 22against the corresponding wall surface. If there is any irregularity orimperfection in the wall Surface with which any particular scraperengages, the scraper may rock slightly as permitted by the nexing of thearms of the sp-ider, in order that the several scrapers may individuallyconform'to the surfaces of the walls of the drawer. V

Upon the rod ii being reversed and moved in the opposite direction, asshown in Figure 4, the several Scrapers will be caused to tilt andassume the position shown in this figure, so that the opposite edges 22of the scrapers will be pressed against the surfaces of the walls of thedrawer. As the agitator moves to the right in Figure 4, the scrapingmembers again rub against the walls of the drawer, dislodging theportions of the liquid which are in contact with these walls and urgingit toward the axis of the drawer.

The handle i2 may be moved back and forth several times in order tocompletely agitate the liquid. This operation takes but a few seconds,after which the door of the refrigerator may be closed, and the drawerwith its contents may remain in place in the refrigerator while thecooling action proceeds. From time to time the above operations arerepeated so that as the liquid is progressively cooled, and proceedsthrough the freezing operation, it will be agitated in order to preventthe solids from separating and in order that the whole body of liquidmay be uniformly frozen. By employing the present apparatus it ispossible to make ice cream of fine texture and equally as smooth as icecream made in the regular freezer.

The gland Q permits the rod ii to be reciprocated through the front wallof the drawer without any liquid escaping around the rod. The severalScrapers 2Q each engage separate Walls of the drawer and the top one mayengage the inside of the cover. Usually, the liquid in the drawer willnot reach the cover except by splashing, but it is deemed advisable toemploy an agitating member which will engage the cover in order that allportions of the liquid may be agitated. l

The agitators 2li are shaped as Shown in the drawing both for thepurpose of having them engage the walls in the manner described, thatis, soi that'the agitators tilt as shown in Figures 3 and 4, and have asqueegee action against the surfaces of the walls. In addition, theagitators have a tendency to direct the portions of the liquid dislodgedfrom the wall surfaces inwardly or away from the walls in order thatfresh portions of the liquid will replace the portions dislodged.

In Figures 6 and 7 I have shown a modified form of my invention whereinit is not necessary to use a gland for the reciprocating rod. In thisform the front wall 23 of the drawer is provided with a notch 2d nearits upper edge; and the flange 25 of the cover'Zt is provided with anotch 2l corresponding with the notch 2li of the drawer so that when thecover is in place these notches will register and provide an openingthrough the front of the drawer in which the horizontal rod 23 mayreciprocate, the rod being provided on the exterior of the drawer with asuitable handle 29. This rod extends along the upper portion of thedrawer' or near the cover, the greater portion of its length, in orderthat it may be reciprocated through the notched front of the drawersubstantially its full length. Within the drawer the rod is bentdownwardly, as shown at 30 and again horizontally at 3|, preferably inline with the axis of the drawer. On this latter portion of the rod theagitator 32 is mounted. The agitator may be constructed in all respectslike the one above described. rlhis device may be operated in the samemanner as the one described above; that is, the handle Z9 may be graspedfrom the exterior of the drawer and it may be moved horizontally backand forth to reciprocate the rod 28. lIhis will move the agitator 32lengthwise of the drawer so that the latter will operate to dislodge theliquid from the surfaces of the drawer and to agitate the liquid in thesame manner as in the previous construction. The sole object of themodified form is to eliminate the necessity of using a gland.

Having described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A device of the class described, including a tray or drawer having acompartment to hold a liquid to be frozen, said tray or drawer adaptedto be inserted into a mechanical refrigerator, a reciprocating rodhaving a portion accessible exteriorly of and near one end wall of saiddrawer to permit said rod to be reciprocated, an agitator composed ofseparate members each adapted to slidingly co-act with the inner surfaceof one of the walls of said drawer, and flexible means for mounting saidagitators on said rod within the drawer, said agitators being adapted toindividually coi-act with the inner surfaces of the several walls ofsaid drawer and adapted to move the contents of the drawer away fromsaid surfaces when said rod is reciprocated.

2. A device of the class described, including a tray or drawer having acompartment to hold a liquid to be frozen, said tray or drawer adaptedto be inserted into a mechanical refrigerator, a reciprocating rodhaving a portion accessible exteriorly of and near one end wall of saiddrawer to permit said rod to be reciprocated, agitators of substantiallytriangular cross section, each cooperating with the inner surface of awall of said drawer, and flexible means for independently connectingsaid agitators with said rod whereby the agitators may independentlyflex laterally and lengthwise in relation to the rod, said agitatorsbeing adapted to move the contents of the drawer away from said surfaceswhen said rod is reciprocated.

3. A device of the class described, including a tray or drawer having acompartment to hold liquid to be frozen, said tray or drawer adapted tobe inserted into a mechanical refrigerator, a reciprocating rod having aportion accessible exteriorly of and near one end wall of said drawer topermit said rod to be reciprocated, and an agitator carried. by said rodwithin said drawer and composed of a plurality of agitating memberssubstantially triangular in cross section with one side of each of saidagitators co-operating with an inner surface of a wall of said drawer, aspider attached to said rod and having arms each carrying one of saidagitators, said arms being flexible whereby when said rod isreciprocated said agitators will slidingly engage the inner surfaces ofthe walls of said drawer and yield whereby the edges of said agitatorswill press against said surfaces.

4. A device of the class described, including a tray or drawer having acompartment to hold liquid to be frozen, a cover for said drawer, areciprocating rod having a portion projecting near one of the walls ofsaid drawer whereby the rod is accessible from the exterior of thedrawer for the purpose of reciprocating said rod, and an agii5 tatorcarried by said rod within said drawer, said agitator including membersadapted to co-act with the inner surfaces of the several walls of saiddrawer and with the under side of the cover of said drawer and adaptedto move the contents of the drawer away from said surfaces when said rodis reciprocated, whereby different portions of the material will bebrought into Contact with said surfaces.

5. A device of the class described, including'a tray or drawer having acompartment to hold liquid to be frozen, said tray or drawer adapted tobe inserted into the cooling coil of a mechanical refrigerator, areciprocating rod having a portion thereof accessible outside of andnear an end wall of said drawer for the purpose of permitting said rodto be reciprocated, and an agitator carried by said rod within saiddrawer and adapted to-Areciprocate with said rod and to cooperate withthe inner surfaces of said drawer to move the contents of the draweraway from said surfaces when said rod is reciprocated, whereby differentportions of the liquid will be brought into Contact with said surfaces.

6. A device of the class described, including a tray or drawer adaptedto be inserted in the cooling coil of a mechanical refrigerator andhaving an elongated compartment adapted to hold a liquid to be frozen,said compartment being dened partly by a flat bottom and side walls, areciprocating rod having a por-tion thereof accessible `exteriorly ofand near one end wall'of said drawer for the purpose of permitting saidrod to be reciprocated, and an agitator carried i by said rod withinsaid drawer and adapted to have a sliding engagement with the innersurfaces of said drawer and adapted to move Vthe 7. A device of theclass described, including a '5 tray or drawer having a compartment tohold a. liquid to be frozen, said tray or drawer adapted to be insertedinto the cooling coil of a mechanical refrigerator, a reciprocating rodhaving a portion thereof accessible outside of and near 10 an end wallof said drawer for the purpose of permitting said rod to bereciprocated, an agitator and means for mounting the same on said rodwithin said drawer, said means being flexible to permit said agitator toyield, said agitator bel`5` ing adapted to co-operate with the innersurfaces of said drawer and to move the contents of the drawer awat7from said surfaces when said rod is reciprocated, whereby differentportions of the material will be brought into contact with said 20surfaces and the material in the drawer will be agitated.

8. A device of the class described, including a tray or drawer having acompartment to' hold liquid to be frozen, said tray or drawer adapted251 to be inserted into a mechanical refrigerator, a reciprocating rodhaving a portion accessible exteriorly of and near one end of saiddrawer whereby the rod may be reciprocated, and an agitator carried'bysaid rod within said drawer and 30 composed of independent membersindividually movable in relation to each other each coact ing with oneof the inner surfaces of the walls of said drawer and adapted to movethe contents of the drawer away from said surfaces when said 35A:

rod is reciprocated.

ARTHUR J. FELTAULT.

